Supporting Characters in the Game are Obsessed

First, I sat in the chair and filled my mouth with the coffee I ordered.

Since the coffee I ordered was “molecular coffee,” there were no coffee beans in that hot liquid composition.

But since organic compounds were essential for the citizens living in the cold city of the Cyberpunk world, there was still a bit of caffeine.

I savored the caffeine that maintained the awakening of my brain along the central nervous system.

【Welcome! Amazing and innovative taste! This is the Center Plaza branch of ‘Quantum Coffee’!】

The loud promotional message from the café’s unmanned kiosk pierced through the gentle background music.

That’s right.

I was currently at a café.

Not only did I enter the café alone, but I was also enjoying a sudden tea time.

It seemed like it was time for me to evolve from ‘I’ to ‘E’ soon.

Well, it was about time.

While having the typical delusion of nerds, I savored the aroma of coffee (without coffee beans).

And there was a valid reason behind my strange thoughts and the time I was spending like this.

First.

The simplest, most basic, and eagerly anticipated ‘Bumbling Gym Operation’ had returned to failure.

I should have anticipated that a miracle (drugs) was needed to overcome machines with the power of humans in the Cyberpunk world.

I pondered and looked for other means.

As mentioned several times, due to my garbage-like physical attributes, ‘cyberware surgery’ was excluded from my options.

I also seriously considered asking the Chairman or Eve to change my whole body with ‘bioware prosthetics,’ but…

Still, the mental burden was quite heavy.

No exercise, no surgery.

Really, what’s the deal with that “kiss” that I’m worrying about so much?

…

But I couldn’t just look at a moth.

I had received treatment safely, but I wondered if it was just my feeling.

My ribs still ached a bit.

Anyway, I needed to find another way.

At that moment, a wheeled ordering robot approached me and interrupted my thoughts.

【Guest, the allocated time for your ordered ‘Quantum Molecular Coffee’ has expired. Would you like to place an additional order?】

I couldn’t just sit comfortably in the café.

“Uh… yes. Please give me the same menu.”

【Confirmed. Have a pleasant stay in Neon City.】

When I answered the staff controlling the machine from behind the camera, the ordering robot made a whirr and rolled away.

Had I been sitting that long?

Checking my watch, it hadn’t even been 20 minutes since I entered the café.

Such a crazy capitalist world…

Meanwhile, an alert on my visual interface flickered into my sight.

It was a notification that I had received a call.

Let’s see who it is…

【Merlin, the slightly less great wizard】

“……”

I think he was originally just called ‘the great wizard.’

When did he change his message name?

Now that I think about it, he was there.

I answered the call, feeling pleased.

32. Lessons Learned from the Ribs (2)

The wizard Merlin.

He was a person I had met recently.

Because of that, instead of a friendly greeting, I immediately asked him what he wanted.

“What is it now?”

[Ha ha, asking that sounds resentful. It’s like I have to have some issues to make a call.]

“……”

We aren’t that close, are we?

Anyway, I brushed that thought aside and asked Merlin.

“Well, it seems like the timing is just right.”

[Hmm?]

“I actually have something to ask my Master.”

[Ha ha, calling me Master is a bit embarrassing, isn’t it?]

“Teacher. Understood.”

[…….]

Merlin’s face, which appeared on the holographic screen, wore a somewhat dissatisfied expression.

Seeing the grumpy old man’s face was uncomfortable for me too.

I quickly changed the subject of our conversation.

“Well, I wanted to ask you about magic.”

Merlin replied with a glimmer in his eyes.

[Oh! You have a question, so please ask away. Naturally, it’s appropriate for you to seek me out. So, what is it?]

It seemed that Merlin felt regretful about not being able to teach me many things during the magic lecture we had at the café last time.

[In fact, I do have some expertise when it comes to teaching others. I’m quite famous in the Neon City Wizard Community. Ha ha!]

“Wizard Community? Is that a thing?”

[…Did you perhaps not get invited?]

“No.”

[……Then let’s just pretend you didn’t hear about it.]

I felt as if I had heard about a group chat everyone was invited to except me. I mean, I’m a pretty famous wizard too…

In the end, only after Merlin confirmed that he would definitely invite me later did we proceed with the next conversation.

I almost felt depressed for a moment.

Anyway, I asked Merlin my lingering question.

“Is there a magic for enhancing one’s physique?”

[?]

Merlin made a strange face upon hearing my question. Like I thought before, this old man was surprisingly expressive for his age.

[If you’re talking about enhancing the body….]

“So.”

How should I explain this?

I simply expressed what I wanted.

“It’s like a spell to increase the strength of the body. If that’s not available, a transformation spell would be okay too.”

I didn’t mention why it was needed.

Secrets of my cohabitants should be kept.

However, it seemed my question was not one of the ‘questions’ Merlin had anticipated.

Merlin, who had been lively a moment ago, immediately fell into silence.

[…Well.]

Merlin’s mouth slowly opened.

[You may not know this, but.]

“Yes.”

[My body has more cyberware installed than you might think. About 60% of it, in fact.]

“Oh.”

Right.

Thinking back, that makes sense.

I remembered what Eve had said the first time I met Merlin.

She advised, ‘I do not recommend engaging in close combat with that individual.’

As I looked at Merlin’s expression, he scratched his head.

[If there were such a thing, I wouldn’t need to undergo cyberware surgery.]

Geez, I had raised my hopes for nothing.

“So that means there isn’t any?”

[…But I can’t say for sure.]

When I showed a hint of disappointment, Merlin widened his eyes and continued speaking.

[The essence of magic is to turn the impossible into the possible. Right now it may be impossible, but that doesn’t mean it will always be impossible.]

“No, you don’t know that right now—.”

[You’re right. For now, we don’t know. But other wizards might know, and just because they don’t know doesn’t mean no one knows.]

“Anyway—.”

[For now, when I have time, I’ll contact other wizards. No, rather than that.]

“……”

[If it’s you, you should be able to create the magic you want on your own. After all, you are the ‘unique wizard’ who has made a name for yourself in magic. Yeah, that sounds good.]

Come on, old man.

Why do you keep talking so much?

Anyway.

The conclusion was like this.

I adjusted my visual interface to slightly raise my voice output.

“So you don’t know right now?”

[……]

Merlin made a face that looked apologetic.

He could just say he didn’t know.

I didn’t understand why he was making such long excuses.

Merlin’s demeanor abruptly deflated, and he couldn’t hide his gloomy expression.

Seeing that made me feel slightly sorry, but I still believed he had done enough by listening to me this much.

“By the way, why did you call me?”

If my tone had changed a bit to a ruder manner, that was just my feeling.

[…Ah, well.]

Merlin gently stroked his beard.

[As I mentioned last time, I would contact you after figuring out a new magical system.]

“Oh, so you found out?”

Then tell me that first—.

[Not yet.]

“……”

He never fulfills expectations.

Merlin showed me behind him through the holographic screen. An old rusty metal door was visible.

[But I found a clue. Do you know anything about the ‘Underground Level’ of the city?]

“ sewage?”

[Including the sewage line.]

I had a rough understanding.

It was a place overflowing with hidden criminals, hazardous materials, and mutants.

In the game, it was also treated like a ‘dungeon concept.’ It was a place where more people didn’t speak than did.

“Well, I know as much as others.”

[Then it will be easier to explain.]

Merlin gazed at me from across the hologram.

[I heard there’s a rumor that wizards have appeared in the underground. That means there might be a new magical system down there.]

“…What?”

[I figured it might be hard to contact you if I went down there. That’s why I called you beforehand.]

“So you’re going down there just because of some rumors?”

[Of course, for research.]

“……”

I felt like I wanted to stop him.

But the old man’s gaze was serious.

In that situation, the only thing I could say to Merlin was one thing.

“…Take care of yourself.”

[Of course, of course.]

Honestly, I couldn’t say I would go down with him.

With that, I ended the call.

…

Hmm.

He’s saying to try making magic myself?

It wasn’t something I hadn’t thought about.

All the magic I had used so far was the result of my independent research.

It’s just that I had been cautious because I had to use magic within my body.

Still.

Since Merlin said that, should I try it?

I lightly circulated the mana that I had gathered in my body. Then I conjured an image. Similar but slightly different from when I used a protective shield.

…No way, is this really going to work?

If I could create magic just by thinking, all the worries and struggles I’d gone through would be all for nothing—

“……”

This is working.

I looked at my hardened skin and thought.

*

My steps were lighter than usual.

I moved to the Golden Smile Condominium and deftly pressed the elevator button.

“…Huh?”

What? Why won’t the button press?

Is it broken or something?

While I was thinking that,

[You need to go up one more floor.]

I heard Eve’s voice echoing in my head.

Since I was on the 13th floor, it probably meant to go up to the 14th floor.

…

Why the sudden 14th floor?

I felt an inexplicable sense of foreboding.

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